Any other 6th sense riders?

[on one]

Do you ever get the feeling like you just need to stop? I do. One time I was riding along a path that I traveled often with a blind curve that goes into a tunnel in Ft. Collins. Usually I would just cruise around the corner into the tunnel, but one day I got that strange feeling to just stop, so I stopped. And then cautiously and slowly rode around the corner to find a parent with her two children taking up the whole path walking around the corner. Shew, I was so glad that I didn't just cruise around the corner as usual because I surely would have crashed into the family. Anyone else ever have these kind of experiences?

[atdlzpae]

I don't get any "6-th sense feelings", probably because I wear headphones. I simply ALWAYS slow down when the visibility is lacking.

There are places where I always slow down to 5km/h because riding any faster would be just throwing a dice.
People don't follow any rules, so you never know when someone (most likely a kid or an animal) just spawns in front of you.

[Cerbera]

Not about riding generally, no. I'm constantly suspicious of what might be round corners, so take them all quite cautiously.

Only time I have come close to anything like that involved seeing a large group of teenagers way in the distance, and choosing to turn round and go another way to avoid them. I don't normally care about groups of people, but these guys had a certain vibe about them I thought it would be wise to avoid...

Edited June 13 by Cerbera

[Hellkitten]

I ride by braille.

[atdlzpae]

7 hours ago, Hellkitten said:

I ride by braille.

Echolocation

[Planemo]

15 hours ago, Cerbera said:

Not about riding generally, no. I'm constantly suspicious of what might be round corners, so take them all quite cautiously.

Same here. I only ever ride at a speed that allows me to stop dead in the distance that I can see.

Ergo, on a 90 degree blind bend on a footpath its done at walking speed. Never had an 'oh shit' moment.

[on one]

I learned an important lesson that day to really be a lot more careful since I don't want to injure anybody, ever, especially myself. I am much more cautious now. It's important not to rely on the normal 5 senses without the sixth sense, intuition. I do think that riding an electric unicycle does help people develop their intuition, though, because it's an extreme activity that pushes us outside of our comfort zone. Riding is a next level activity that sharpens our planning abilities.

Another skill that riding an EUC sharpens is defensive locomotion, I am always scanning people for their intention so that I know where they are heading and I have to choose a safe destination no matter what they do. For example, if I can tell that their vehicle is in reverse then I know that there is no way they can change gears before I get past them.

Edited June 14 by woke rider
one more thing

[Cerbera]

Whilst riding in crowded places isn't so much fun, there is a certain joy to be had in employing your 'terminator-vision' in which you move slowly through the crowds, scanning people's vectors and plotting their trajectories, and calculating who needs avoiding and who doesn't. But sometimes I'm tired, or just not in the mood for it, in which I case I think 'oh not today', get down and trolley it  

Over time though, and in less crowded places I find my brain sort of evolves to only notice the problematic ones, which sometimes leads to me failing to spot a surprise danger coming at me, as life throws its usual chaotic little hand into the mix. I guess that's the opposite of intuition - shit you just didn't see coming, and I certainly get my fair share of that ! 'Thorns at mouth level in the wind' was the most recent one of those I had !

Edited June 14 by Cerbera

[Planemo]

16 hours ago, woke rider said:

I do think that riding an electric unicycle does help people develop their intuition

I don't know your own driving/riding history but I see a lot of problems with people buying 50+mph EUC's that have never taken a car or motorcycle driving test. Hell, it seems many have never spent much time on a pushbike.

This is asking for big trouble and it's no wonder that the government/public see us and escooters as a problem. It's frustrating that it's not actually the vehicles that are the problem, it's the riders.

99.9% of my EUC 'intuition' has been learnt/taught to me on something other than an EUC. In fact, the only real adjustment to EUC for me is that they don't stop anything like as quickly as any other vehicle I have used which means being even more careful and alert in some ways than if I was riding a motorbike.

[Planemo]

16 hours ago, woke rider said:

It's important not to rely on the normal 5 senses without the sixth sense

I meant to say that intuition still, and only ever, relies on your 5 senses. There is no 'sixth sense'. You had all the information you needed re your footpath scenario from your eyes. I'm not trying to sound holier than thou, it sounds like you have adjusted your riding and thats all you can do. We have all learnt from our mistakes - some unfortunately too late. You didn't get as far as having a mishap so all is good

16 hours ago, woke rider said:

it's an extreme activity that pushes us outside of our comfort zone.

One should never, ever ride outside of their comfort zone unless theres zero chance of harming others. I've done it a couple of times during MTB for example but even then it's somewhat selfish given that taxpayers will pick up any medical bills that I could incur so it's not something I aim to do.

16 hours ago, woke rider said:

Riding is a next level activity that sharpens our planning abilities.

This is the same no matter what the vehicle is tbh. Everything should be ridden/driven defensively, with forethought and with planning for the unexpected.

 

[on one]

One time I almost got in a really bad car accident. I was driving along like I always do on one of our back country roads on my way home from college when an elderly driver and her grandchild made a left turn just in front of me. There was not time to stop, though I did slam on the brakes and veered as much as I could to miss her. Nevertheless, I did crash into her vehicle. Nobody was injured, thankfully. The highway patrolman who investigated the accident told me that I hit her vehicle in the perfect spot so as not injure anybody, I hit the rear axel of her car and they just spun around without absorbing the g forces.

[on one]

22 hours ago, Cerbera said:

I guess that's the opposite of intuition - shit you just didn't see coming, and I certainly get my fair share of that !

I have certainly experienced this.

6 hours ago, Planemo said:

One should never, ever ride outside of their comfort zone

lol, then there would be no riders since learning is outside of the comfort zone. I understand that caution is needed, but learning to ride an electric unicycle is about as safe as "responsible drinking" outside of tinctures and such drinking alcohol clouds judgement of humans and makes the clumsy and have accidents.

[Planemo]

15 hours ago, on one said:

I have certainly experienced this.

For me, very rarely. I honestly can't think of the last time I was caught out, be that EUC, car, motorcycle or pushbike. What are we doing differently? I only have the same senses as yourself

15 hours ago, on one said:

lol, then there would be no riders since learning is outside of the comfort zone.

I note that you cleverly omitted the rest of my sentence where I said 'unless theres zero chance of harming others'. Both myself and may daughter learnt how to ride on a big open grassy field, some of which had ruts. potholes, clumpy grass etc. Away from anyone. Our learning was taken slowly and with planning, I can't remember ever being outside my comfort zone and I made sure my daughter wasn't either. Yes we fell occasionally but at low speed, with no damage to us or the wheel (and we geared up even during this phase). We deliberately stayed on that field until we could really throw the wheel around and certainly until we were 100% confident that we could control the wheel around people, hazards, rapid stops etc. After the field, I can honestly say that riding on footpaths/pavements etc was a walk in the park.

So yes, I maintain that it's entirely possible to learn and indeed continue riding EUC without being outside ones comfort zone and certainly without causing unnecessary risk to others.

 

[techyiam]

22 hours ago, Planemo said:

I meant to say that intuition still, and only ever, relies on your 5 senses. There is no 'sixth sense'. You had all the information you needed re your footpath scenario from your eyes.

My take from the OP's first post is that he stopped without seeing anyone in front of him, even though normally he doesn't stop, since imminent danger was not seen yet. Suppose, he was communicated silently and directly through thought from another entity. It may have seemed that it was from his own mind, since he would not be able to rationalize it, otherwise. And on this occasion, he decided to heed the advice. Would this be considered sixth-sense?

[on one]

1 hour ago, Planemo said:

Both myself and may daughter learnt how to ride on a big open grassy field, some of which had ruts. potholes, clumpy grass etc. Away from anyone.

That's a wonderful memory.

[Planemo]

17 minutes ago, techyiam said:

My take from the OP's first post is that he stopped without seeing anyone in front of him, even though normally he doesn't stop, since imminent danger was not seen yet. Suppose, he was communicated silently and directly through thought from another entity. It may have seemed that it was from his own mind, since he would not be able to rationalize it, otherwise. And on this occasion, he decided to heed the advice. Would this be considered sixth-sense?

Oooh theres probably a topic for another thread entirely on whether humans have anything beyond the 5 recognised senses. I dearly wish there was, and I want to be a believer.

But if there was, like most stuff like this, I feel there would be more hard, repeatable evidence.

I suspect the OP simply came to the realisation (taken from his 5 usual senses) that his speed wasn't safe for the situation.

Maybe he also heard (but can't recall) the sound of one of the kids. We often block stuff like this from memory once we have already acted on it.

As I say, I remain open to the possibility of a 6th sense, only because I would love it if it existed, and train it too.

[Robse]

On 6/14/2024 at 5:44 AM, atdlzpae said:

Echolocation

Exceptional, terrifying and joyful at the same time. and makes me happy with my eyes and my sight. Remember those safety glasses when you play with fireworks.

[Robse]

About 10 years ago i was riding my motorcycle late in the evening along a country road
where I have ridden many, many times before.  A completely straight road, no trees,
no side roads, late at night, no traffic, and therefore the opportunity to ride a little
more.. ehh..  briskly.  But halfway through I got this weird feeling that it would probably be better
to slow down, even though there was nothing to see ahead - 10 seconds after I had slowed
down significantly a trailer appeared out of the darkness, a total darkened and unmarked
agricultural equipment parked almost in the middle of the road.  No one to see.  
And I slowly passed it with my heart in my throat. Parked and called the appropriate
authority to ask them to take care of the problem before others would have an accident.
If I hadn't slowed down, I wouldn't be sitting here today.  And why - I have no idea.

 

[techyiam]

1 hour ago, Robse said:

About 10 years ago i was riding my motorcycle late in the evening along a country road
where I have ridden many, many times before.  A completely straight road, no trees,
no side roads, late at night, no traffic, and therefore the opportunity to ride a little
more.. ehh..  briskly.  But halfway through I got this weird feeling that it would probably be better
to slow down, even though there was nothing to see ahead - 10 seconds after I had slowed
down significantly a trailer appeared out of the darkness, a total darkened and unmarked
agricultural equipment parked almost in the middle of the road.  No one to see.  
And I slowly passed it with my heart in my throat. Parked and called the appropriate
authority to ask them to take care of the problem before others would have an accident.
If I hadn't slowed down, I wouldn't be sitting here today.  And why - I have no idea.

Interesting. 

After having this so call "feeling", did you react (slow down) immediately, or did you hesitated first, but the "feeling" was persistent? 

[Robse]

8 minutes ago, techyiam said:

Interesting. 

After having this so call "feeling", did you react (slow down) immediately, or did you hesitated first, but the "feeling" was persistent? 

it was somewhat the same feeling as if you handle a freshly sharpened extremely sharp chef's knife and have to cut something very small, for example chop a small garlic, and you get this strange feeling of "if I'm not careful here, I will soon be missing a piece of my finger " - an unpleasant feeling in the stomach. I slowed down relatively quickly - didn't wait.

[techyiam]

9 minutes ago, Robse said:

it was somewhat the same feeling as if you handle a freshly sharpened extremely sharp chef's knife and have to cut something very small, for example chop a small garlic, and you get this strange feeling of "if I'm not careful here, I will soon be missing a piece of my finger " - an unpleasant feeling in the stomach. I slowed down relatively quickly - didn't wait.

Did you get a "feeling" or the need to slow down (brake), or did you just sensed imminent danger, but you weren't given specific hints / instructions?  "Better to slow down" was your choice, right, not part of the "feelings"? (In the OP's case, he said he had a "feeling" that he should "make a stop". That is specific.)

If "to slow down" was your choice then it sounds like you sensed/felt imminent danger beyond what your normal five senses can detect. Also, you were able to save yourself from harm, no other persons were involved.

In the OP's case, the level of danger sensed/felt wasn't as acute, (he could have been alerted also}. And also in his case, his actions save the family from harm, and maybe himself too, but mostly of other people.

Perhaps, your case is closer to a sixth-sense kind of thing, whereas, in the OP's case, it could be closer to a divine intervention kind of thing.

In other words, it was all you who saved the situation without help from another entity.

Whereas, in OP's case, he could have had outside help.

All very interesting.

[Robse]

7 minutes ago, techyiam said:

Did you get a "feeling" or the need to slow down (brake), or did you just sensed imminent danger, but you weren't given specific hints / instructions?  "Better to slow down" was your choice, right, not part of the "feelings"? (In the OP's case, he said he had a "feeling" that he should "make a stop". That is specific.)

If "to slow down" was your choice then it sounds like you sensed/felt imminent danger beyond what your normal five senses can detect. Also, you were able to save yourself from harm, no other persons were involved.

In the OP's case, the level of danger sensed/felt wasn't as acute, (he could have been alerted also}. And also in his case, his actions save the family from harm, and maybe himself too, but mostly of other people.

Perhaps, your case is closer to a sixth-sense kind of thing, whereas, in the OP's case, it could be closer to a divine intervention kind of thing.

In other words, it was all you who saved the situation without help from another entity.

Whereas, in OP's case, he could have had outside help.

All very interesting.

Yes, I can't put my finger on exactly what it was, but it was uncomfortable and made me slow down. Incidentally, an experience that can still make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up today when I think back on it, but not because of what could have happened, but the way it was prevented. Could also be a pure coincidence - maybe even just a bit of common sense from the back of the brain, that was suddenly allowed to drown out the enthusiasm for speed with a smoldering sensation and a raised index finger "slow down now you fool"  , but it wouldn't surprise me if there is more between heaven and earth than we humans have a concept of - you just have to remember (I think) that just because something is not understandable, then it should not be the reason to start believing in anything just to get an explanation

[techyiam]

6 minutes ago, Robse said:

Yes, I can't put my finger on exactly what it was, but it was uncomfortable and made me slow down. Incidentally, an experience that can still make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up today when I think back on it, but not because of what could have happened, but the way it was prevented. Could also be a pure coincidence - maybe even just a bit of common sense from the back of the brain, that was suddenly allowed to drown out the enthusiasm for speed with a smoldering sensation and a raised index finger "slow down now you fool"  , but it wouldn't surprise me if there is more between heaven and earth than we humans have a concept of - you just have to remember (I think) that just because something is not understandable, then it should not be the reason to start believing in anything just to get an explanation

For motorcyclists travelling at speeds on highways through forests and woodlands, there is always the feeling of trepidation of a potential moose or deer strike. However, the sudden decision to slow down coinciding with a trailer parked in the middle of the road a little further down, I would consider this a little different.

One can argue as you have that sometimes one decides to take less risks and decides to slow down, thinking that one has pushed one's luck enough. I've experienced this but my slowing down did not followed by imminent danger. And I had no uncomfortable feeling. Speaking of which, riding in the dark rainy nights in the winter on my euc can sometimes give me uncomfortable feelings, but I doubt those are the same as the one you felt that night.

Not sure what happened. But that was a special save to be sure.

One of the pillars of science is based on observations. Once we have one, we try to find an explanation for the phenomenon / observation.

I think it is possible to make a distinction between intuition, fear, and other things like sixth-sense and divine intervention, depending on the person.

 

[on one]

When I was a teenager I had a really early morning paper route. I had to get up at like 2:30 am once a week to deliver these papers. I only kept this route for like 4 months because I never had time to collect and it was interfering with my schooling, but when I finally did collect I had nearly $400 so I bought a really expensive Redline racing bmx bike.

One day I stopped into the deli to buy some garlic bread and I left my bike outside the store only for second. My bike was gone! I called my step-father who quickly showed up. He took me all the way down a foot hill trail behind the shop. And at the very end of the trail we found my bike! It was just thrown on top of a huge spider bush and abandoned. My mother always said he had an uncanny sense for stuff like that.

[GothamMike]

I ridden on trails where I felt I was being watched. Especially at night.